The Love Song of Johnny Valentine by Teddy Wayne

Teddy Wayne's website

I picked up this A.R.C. honestly because the cover was VERY shiny, and when I read the teaser that came with the book, it sounded interesting. A little weird, but interesting. This book chronicles part of the journey of eleven year old Jonny Valentino, stage name Jonny Valentine, as he's one tour of the United States. He's a young singer who got his start because of his talent, but also because of his manager/mother, Jane Valentino,  and her drive to leave poverty. When she realizes that he has talent, she helps push him to the top.

Overall, the book deals with his budding sexuality, confusion about it, his overbearing mother, desire to see his father again, etc. He is thrust into the spotlight at such an early age, it's hard for him to deal with it, and his mother does not handle it well either. She has issues with drinking and drugs, and Jonny has a problem with sleeping, so often takes one of his mother's sleeping pills.

We get an inside look at how hard the music business can be on someone so young. The music label keeps trying to change his image in order to draw people in and sell more records. They even make a fake relationship between him and another girl, trying to spur her career, which annoys him, but seems to almost parallel some real events in our society.

I think this book is a decent read, though sometimes it gets a little weird and the pace does slow down at times. But it's an amusing and sobering look at how stars can be made today, as well as how the lives of the famous young people can be overly dominated by well-meaning parents.

Final Report:
The Love Song of Johnny Valentine by Teddy Wayne
285 pages
$24.99 (Hardcover)
5/10

Available for purchase at your local Barnes and Noble or at Barnes and Noble online